capacity

American  

[kuh-pas-i-tee] / kəˈpæs ɪ ti /

noun

• capacities
  plural

1. 

   the ability to receive or contain.

   This hotel has a large capacity.

2. the maximum amount or number that can be received or contained; cubic contents; volume.

   The inn is filled to capacity.

   The gasoline tank has a capacity of 20 gallons.

   Synonyms:

   amplitude

3. power of receiving impressions, knowledge, etc.; mental ability.

   the capacity to learn calculus.

   Synonyms:

   talent, endowment

4. actual or potential ability to perform, yield, or withstand.

   He has a capacity for hard work.

   The capacity of the oil well was 150 barrels a day.

   She has the capacity to go two days without sleep.

   Synonyms:

   capability, competence, adequacy, aptitude

5. quality or state of being susceptible to a given treatment or action.

   Steel has a high capacity to withstand pressure.

6. position; function; role.

   He served in the capacity of legal adviser.

7. legal qualification.

8. Electricity.

   1. capacitance.

   2. maximum possible output.

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adjective

1. reaching maximum capacity.

   a capacity audience;

   a capacity crowd.

capacity British  

/ kəˈpæsɪtɪ /

noun

1. the ability or power to contain, absorb, or hold

2. the amount that can be contained; volume

   a capacity of six gallons

3. 1. the maximum amount something can contain or absorb (esp in the phrase filled to capacity )

   2. ( as modifier )

      a capacity crowd

4. the ability to understand or learn; aptitude; capability

   he has a great capacity for Greek

5. the ability to do or produce (often in the phrase at capacity )

   the factory's output was not at capacity

6. a specified position or function

   he was employed in the capacity of manager

7. a measure of the electrical output of a piece of apparatus such as a motor, generator, or accumulator

8. electronics a former name for capacitance

9. computing

   1. the number of words or characters that can be stored in a particular storage device

   2. the range of numbers that can be processed in a register

10. the bit rate that a communication channel or other system can carry

11. legal competence

    the capacity to make a will

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• capacities
  plural

Etymology

Origin of capacity

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English capacite, capasite, from Middle French, from Latin capācitāt-, stem of capācitās “ability, understanding,” equivalent to capāci- (stem of capāx “confident, fit, roomy,” equivalent to cap(ere) “to take, seize” + -āx, adjective suffix) + -tās -ty ²

Explanation

Capacity describes your ability to do something or the amount something can hold. If your bird cage is at full capacity, you can't stuff one more feathered friend in there without causing birdie claustrophobia. From the Latin word capacitatem meaning “breadth, capacity,” capacity is a noun that in the simplest sense means "ability" or "capability": the capability of a room to hold a certain number of people, the ability of a law to change crime rates, your ability to pick up foreign languages. You might hear about factories working at "full capacity" — that means at full speed, producing as much as they possibly can.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

capacity capacities

Google does not disclose site-level capacity figures for power.

From Barron's ● Oct. 11, 2026

The difficulty is finding a way to minimize their capacity to control territory without trampling republican values.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 11, 2026

Arcee, an open-source AI startup, recently secured commitments for both capital and computing capacity from an infrastructure partner, said CEO Mark McQuade, but the deal collapsed when the firm’s data center was delayed.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 10, 2026

Over cries of foul from those who came in person, the board’s attorney Shayla Myers announced the meeting was canceled because the Zoom channel had a capacity of only 1,000.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 10, 2026

“That’s the plan? Get out of Davey? Bigger town, larger capacity for tolerance?”

From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold

We are building capacities on the Red Sea.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 25, 2026

"Understanding how non-human animals responded to death provides insight into their emotional lives, social bonds, and cognitive capacities."

From Science Daily ● Sep. 22, 2026

The suit names Paxton and Stephen Brint Carlton, the executive director of the Texas Medical Board, in their official and individual capacities, as well as Bexar County District Attorney Joe Gonzales in his official capacity.

From Salon ● Sep. 17, 2026

Though it noted that expanding production capacities requires "significant lead time."

From Barron's ● Sep. 15, 2026

Just as the telescope improved the capacities of the eye, these tools improved the capacities of the mind.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton

Related Words

• capability
• competence
• efficiency
• facility
• power
• readiness
• skill
• strength
• talent